


Dark Heiress

by WhiteWolf14



Category: Legacies (TV 2018), The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries & Related Fandoms, The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Dark Lizzie, Dark Lizzie Saltzman, F/F, F/M, Gemini Coven - Freeform, Lizzie Saltzman Needs a Hug, Lizzie grows up in prison world, Lizzie is a bitch, Lizzie is raised by Kai and Jade, Other, Prison Worlds (Vampire Diaries), Uncle-Niece Relationship, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:42:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25043347
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhiteWolf14/pseuds/WhiteWolf14
Summary: After 7-year-old Lizzie Saltzman lost control and killed a fellow classmate. Her dad pulled out a strangle looking device and was arguing with her mom about what her punishment should be. And Lizzie curious about what the device was, accidentally activated it, unknowingly changing the course of her destiny...
Relationships: Caroline Forbes & Lizzie Saltzman, Hope Mikaelson & Lizzie Saltzman, Hope Mikaelson/Josie Saltzman, Hope Mikaelson/Lizzie Saltzman, Hope Mikaelson/Lizzie Saltzman/Josie Saltzman, Jade & Lizzie Saltzman, Josie Saltzman & Lizzie Saltzman, Lizzie Saltzman & Alyssa Chang, Lizzie Saltzman & Everyone, Malachai "Kai" Parker & Josie Saltzman, Malachai "Kai" Parker & Lizzie Saltzman, Penelope Park & Lizzie Saltzman
Comments: 18
Kudos: 109





	1. Cast

**Author's Note:**

> (I do not own any of the imaging used. All rights go to creators. Nor do I own Legacies, Originals, or Vampire Diaries)

* * *

**Tierney Smith as young Lizzie Saltzman**

"He deserved it. He said mean things about me and Josie. He said we were abom-man-min-a-tio...whatever the word was. It sounded bad and I told him to stop but he didn't...so I got mad."

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Jenny Boyd as Lizzie Saltzman**

****

"If it isn't my dearest twin sister. Last time I saw you, you were yay high but then again...so was I... Did you miss me?"

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Lily Rose Smith as young Josie Saltzman**

"Where's Lizzie? Where is she?!"

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Kaylee Bryant as Josie Saltzman**

"I never stopped looking for you, no matter how many times people said you were dead. I knew you weren't...I never gave up on you because you're my sister. My other half."

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Chris Wood as Kai Parker**

"Once upon a time, there were two princesses of a kingdom of light. They were told to stay away from the dark. And the eldest listened but the youngest was hypnotized by the power the darkness held and went in search of the dark kingdom, where her uncle ruled, wishing to know the truth...and she was reborn the Dark Heiress..."

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Danielle Rose Russell as Hope Mikaelson**

"We found her. We actually did it. Guess all that hard work paid off, wouldn't you say, Jo?"

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Giorgia Whigham as Jade**

"Hey, little miss, I got a little spell for you to do."

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Olivia Liang as Alyssa Chang**

"You've certainly grown-up, haven't you Saltzman? Still as crazy as I remember... Although I have to say, black is a good look on you."

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Quincy Fouse as Milton Greasley**

"She's not evil...she just doesn't care what others think of her."

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Lulu Antariksa as Penelope Park**

"Jojo, you have to be careful around her. She's extremely dangerous...which is kind of hot, but that's not the point"

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Aria Shahghasemi as Landon Kirby**

"How did I not know that Josie had a twin sister in all the years, I've been here?"

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Alex Smith as Rafael Waithe**

"So, let me get this straight...she's your twin, who everyone thought was dead but wasn't. Instead, she was trapped in the prison world with a bunch of killers, who ended up raising her from 7 on? And we're letting her stay here?"

<><><><><><><><><><>

**Chris De'Sean Lee as Kaleb Hawkins**

"Does anyone else have no idea what's going on here? Cause I'm lost af..."

<><><><><><><><><><>


	2. Strange Occurrences

* * *

Lizzie ignored the voice calling her name, knowing it was one of the older witches at the school who treated Josie and her like monsters.

“Lizzie! Oh, come on freak. Are you hard of hearing now?” The guy said, mockingly, and Lizzie turned on her heel.

She glared at the teenager with all her might, but it didn’t faze the idiot. 

It was Malcolm, the future leaders of the Sol Coven. 

The Sol Coven was full of a bunch of idiots in Lizzie’s opinion. With their heads so far up their butts.

They believed themselves to be one of the strongest covens out there, and that hadn’t been true until her bio coven was wiped out, leaving only two of them left.

Which severely messed with the Coven politics of that time.

Yes, there was such a thing as Coven politics.

She and Josie had a class on it every week. It was extremely boring but apparently it was necessary for them to know.

The only reason Lizzie even paid attention in the class was that it would allow her to know how to take back the number 1 position when she and her sister got older but for now, she would lie and wait, letting the airheads believe they were on top.

She focused back on the self-proclaimed king of the witches.

“What do you want?” Lizzie asked, knowing that she would get in trouble if she yelled at the boy. 

“Awe is the little leech upset? Do you need your mommy and daddy?” Malcolm asked, with a sneer.

He stood over her, clearly trying to intimidate her.

Which, to be honest, was kind of working.

Lizzie backed up, causing her back to bump into the table behind her.

She felt her anger rise as she noticed the satisfied look on Malcolm’s ugly face as she retreated.

Lizzie rolled her eyes. “What I need is for you to come up with some better insults.” She replied, snarkily.

“Better insults? Now, why would I listen to an abomination like you and your sister?” Malcolm sneered. “The Gemini Coven has really fallen if two siphon-leeches are the only two that are left. I’m sure that if they were still alive, you two would be dead as a doornail.”

Lizzie felt her face heat up in anger.

But Malcolm didn’t stop. “And not only that, you are crazy as well.”

“No, I’m not!” Lizzie yelled, defensibly.

She wasn’t...her mom said so.

Right?

Her mom would never lie to her.

Malcolm smirked. “So you’re not bipolar?” He asked, innocently.

Lizzie went silent.

Bipolar wasn’t crazy...she was just a little too emotional at times.

Malcolm took her silence as agreement and kept talking.

“Exactly. Bipolar equals mental illness with then equals crazy. Therefore, you are crazy.” Malcolm said, looking extremely proud of himself.

Lizzie’s eyes darkened in rage and instinctively her hand went to the table behind her and started siphoning the protection spell that surrounded the boarding school.

Power surged through her, and Lizzie felt like she was on cloud nine.

Not that she knew what that meant but she heard the other students say that when they felt extremely floaty and high, which was another word that she wasn’t sure what it meant, like really, how did people feel high in the sky?

Lizzie could feel a tingly feeling go through her body.

Everything felt hot but not a painful hot...it was like she was a volcano about to burst.

She could feel the magic crackle and lash out underneath her skin, ready to strike the bully. 

“Shut up…” Lizzie whispered, warningly.

Malcolm smirked, mockingly, not sensing the danger in the air. However, some of the other students that were walking by -ignoring the very obvious bullying that was happening right in front of them- clearly sensed the dangerous air surrounding the young siphoner and rushed out of the area they were in.

“Awe did I hurt the freaks feelings?” He asked, acting sympathetic. He laughed to himself. “Who am I trying to kid, no one cares about your-” He cut off, clutching his throat.

Lizzie cocked her head slightly to the side, her eyes flickering dangerously in the dim light. 

She could feel her magic wrapping itself around his throat, holding it gently but not adding any pressure. Simply making the jerk aware of its presence.

His eyes were wide with fear.

“I said shut up…” Lizzie said, her face impassive. “But you didn’t listen...that was your mistake.”

Lizzie held out her hand.

She wanted him to suffer.

For every cruel and nasty thing, he ever said to her.

She wanted him to hurt.

And her magic answered her call.

Malcolm opened his mouth to cry out in pain as he was hit with an aneurysm but no sound came out.

He fell to his knees, with a red substance coming from his nose, eyes, and ears.

Strange…

That never happened when her aunt Bonnie did this to people.

Lizzie eyed him curiously.

Was that blood?

Gross…

Suddenly Malcolm dropped to the ground unmoving and Lizzie stared down at him, as she felt her magic retreat.

Did he get knocked out by the spell or something?

Oops...

“Elizabeth?” Her dad called out sounding horrified. Lizzie turned to see him looking between her and Malcolm.

“What did you do?” He asked, running forward, pushing her backwards away from Malcolm.

Lizzie stared at him in hurt. “Daddy?”

Her dad knelt down next to Malcolm and pressed his fingers into his neck. He pulled back after a moment and stared at Lizzie. He looked at her but his eyes weren’t focused on her like he was seeing someone else in her place.

When he finally came back to himself, his expression ranged from anger to fear to disappointment.

He pulled out his phone and made a quick call, before grabbing her hand roughly and dragging her to his office.

When they reached his office, her dad sat her in a chair and started pacing. Then he went over to the bookcase and pulled out a box. He opened it and pulled out a strange-looking object that had gears and stuff in it.

That looks cool...what is it?

“Daddy?” Lizzie said, trying to get his attention.

He turned to her, the look in his eyes was strange and he put the object on his desk.

“Elizabeth, do you know what you’ve done?’” He asked, looking very tense. He moved so that he was kneeling in front of her chair.

“I hurt someone…” Lizzie said, answering him quietly.

“You didn’t just hurt him...you killed him.” He said, his voice rising as his anger got the best of him. He straightened and moved away, rubbing his hand over his face.

Lizzie froze and looked up at her dad with wide eyes. “What?” She whispered.

Did he just say she killed Malcolm?

As in he’s dead...like her mom’s mom.

She wasn’t completely sure what death was but she knew it was bad and she knew that her being the cause of it was even worse.

Her dad was about to say something else when the door burst open revealing her mom. Her mom rushed forward and knelt in front of Lizzie, pulling her into a hug.

“Lizzie,” Her mom whispered as she pulled back to look at her. “Are you okay, baby girl?” 

Lizzie nodded hesitantly, looking at her dad who was looking at her mom in disapproval. 

“I’m okay.”

“Caroline,” Her dad said to her mom, warningly. But all her mom did was send him a glare to shut up before turning back to Lizzie.

“Lizzie, I need you to tell me what happened, okay?” Caroline said, looking at Lizzie reassuringly.

Lizzie thought back to what happened before she lost control and felt her anger rise as Malcolm’s words flashed through the forefront of her mind.

“He deserved it,” Lizzie said, angrily. Not hearing the gasp from her mom nor did she see the look her dad gave her. “He said mean things about me and Josie. He said we were abom-man-min-a-tio...whatever the word was. It sounded bad and I told him to stop but he didn’t...so I got mad.”

Her mom and dad exchanged looks. Her dad turned away, as her mom spotted the object her dad brought out.

Her mom gasped and gave her dad a horrified and angry look. She stood up and grabbed her dad’s arm, pulling him to another room that was attached to the office.

Lizzie stared after them, before glancing at the object. She felt a connection to it…

Lizzie stood up and walked over to the object but she didn’t touch it.

Instead, she reached out with the remaining magic she had and skimmed it over it. 

She gasped.

The object reacted to her magic touching it and reached back.

Cool.

Lizzie stared at it for a moment.

The magic...it felt like hers and her sisters.

It was like they made it...except she didn’t remember making it.

Lizzie reached out to touch it but froze hearing loud voices from the room her parents just entered.

Lizzie looked at the object, then at the door her parents went through.

She had a choice, she could mess around with the object or she could eavesdrop on her parents…

The choice was easy.

She closed her eyes and did the spell that her sister and her used all the time.

It allowed them to be undetected -hearing wise- by vampires. Perfect for sneaking around.

She went over to the door and opened it barely so that sound could come through better.

“We are not sending our daughter to that place..what the hell is wrong with you?” Her mom shouted causing Lizzie’s eyes to widen.

Did her mom just curse?

Wait...but her mom said cursing wasn’t allowed.

But if she cursed, it wasn’t fair to say that Lizzie could curse too.

Also...what did she mean by sending her away?

“Caroline, she killed someone,” Her dad argued.

“It was an accident.” Her mom defended Lizzie with no hesitation.

“You saw her in there. There was zero remorse on her face.” Her dad said, and Lizzie could tell he was getting angrier.

“She’s a child. She doesn’t understand the concept of death or killing.” Her mom replied, an argument at the ready. “She’s also bipolar, therefore she reacts more violently to things, which is not a good combination with her magic.”

“Or she’s just like Kai.” Her dad snapped back.

There was silence for a moment before Lizzie heard a slap. She covered her mouth with a gasp.

“Don’t you ever say that again.” Her mom growled.

There was another silence.

“I let you send those teenagers into the 2018 prison world a year ago because I trusted that you knew what you were doing and that you could recognize when someone was too dangerous to be at the school or even out in the world but now...now I wonder if those 3 really deserved that.” Her mom said, her voice was quieter now.

“They killed people and showed no remorse for it. There was no other option…” Her dad replied.

“The fact that you even considered sending one of our children into that terrible place disgusts me,” Caroline said, softly.

Lizzie moved away from the door.

What did that mean?

Prison World?

What was that?

And who was Kai?

Lizzie frowned, trying to figure out if she recognized any of what was said. However, before she could get that deep in her thoughts, she sensed the object that reacted to her magic earlier, reaching out again.

Lizzie looked over and approached cautiously.

She looked down at it, sensing the magic inside it.

It was like it was awakened by her magic.

Lizzie reached out and touched it.

The metal was cool but there was something strange within it.

Lizzie ran her fingers along the edges of the gears when suddenly her finger got caught on one of the sharp corners cutting her finger.

Lizzie gasped in surprise at the sudden pain, not noticing the glow that formed from her blood hitting the object.

And before Lizzie could react, a glow surrounded her and she disappeared.


	3. Jaded World

* * *

Lizzie looked around in confusion, she was no longer in the office. Instead, she was in a bedroom that was suspiciously shaped like the office. 

Lizzie swallowed nervously.

“Mommy?” Lizzie called, softly.

There was no reply.

Lizzie could feel her panic beginning to rise. Hesitantly, she walked out of the office turned bedroom. 

“Dad?” She called instead. 

There was utter silence.

Where were her mom and dad?

She was just with them...

Lizzie slowly continued down the hallway that was very different from what she remembered. Lizzie was young but she wasn’t stupid. Wherever she was...wasn’t the school but at the same time, it was.

Just different.

It wasn’t long before Lizzie reached the lounge. Her palms were sweaty, and her breathing had increased.

Where was everyone?

There were no students...there was no one.

She was alone.

And she was scared.

Lizzie felt her eyes fill with tears and she rubbed her eyes sniffling.

_ Click _

A door was opened.

She looked around fearfully.

Where was that?

On one hand, if there was a noise, that meant people but on the other, what if they were dangerous?

Lizzie ran over to the corner of the room to where a side table was, grabbing a blanket from the couch as she did so and crawled into the cramped space. Once she was in, she covered herself with the blanket.

She closed her eyes and hugged her knees close to her.

There was an eerie silence…

* * *

Josie felt strange, something was wrong, she could tell. Where were her parents? Where was Lizzie?

She looked up as her mom entered the room, with a look of fear on her face.

“Mom? What’s wrong?” Josie asked, staring at her in worry.

“Josie, have you seen your sister, she was just with us but somehow, she’s just gone.” Her mom said, hurriedly.

“What? No...where is she?” Josie panicked.

“I don’t know, baby but we’ll find her. Can you sense her at all?” She asked, looking at her eldest daughter in concern.

“No...it’s like she’s not there but the bond is still intact,” Josie said, panic showing on her face. “Why can’t I feel her? I should be able to feel her…”

Josie’s eyes welled with unshed tears.

Her mom rushed forward and pulled her into a hug.

“We’ll find her, I promise.”

* * *

Lizzie finally moved from her hiding place, after waiting a while. She was about to leave the room when suddenly she was grabbed around the waist.

“Got you,” A female voice said.

And Lizzie screamed, twisting wildly, trying to get the person to let go.

“No, no, no,” Lizzie said, over and over.

Then she grabbed the arm around and started siphoning painfully. And the person cried out in pain and released her.

Lizzie stumbled away and turned around, with her hand up in the air, ready to protect herself with the magic she just acquired.

She paused when she saw the teenage girl, who had blue eyes and pretty brown hair.

Lizzie stared at her wide-eyed and the teen raised her hands in a placating manner.

“Shh, calm down, little miss, I’m not going to hurt you,” She said, lowering herself into a crouch, trying to appear less threatening.

“Who are you?” Lizzie asked, fearfully.

“My name is Jade, what’s yours?” Jade said, gently.

“Lizzie” She hesitantly replied.

“That’s a very pretty name” Jade complimented, with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

“Thank you,” Lizzie responded, hesitantly, unsure if she should be running right about now.

“Hey, Lizzie, does your last name happen to be Saltzman?” Jade inquired, with something dark in her eyes.

“Maybe,” Lizzie replied, watching the teen carefully.

“Hmm, well I knew your dad,” Jade said, but Lizzie could tell based on her expression, that they didn’t get along.

“I feel sorry for you then,” Lizzie said, still irritated at her dad. And Jade raised an eyebrow at those words.

“And why is that?” She asked, looking at Lizzie curiously.

“He’s a jerk,” Lizzie stated like it was a fact and Jade gave her an amused look.

“Why do you think that?” She questioned, as she shifted into a kneeling position.

“He yelled at me for killing someone, who was calling me mean names,” Lizzie said, crossing her arm over her cheat with an offended look on her face.

Jade went completely still and stared at Lizzie for a moment.

“....what were the names?” She asked, after a moment.

“Abomination, freak, crazy and more than that too,” Lizzie said, looking down.

“Really? Well from what I’m hearing, little miss, your reaction was justified,” Jade said, giving her an approving look. And Lizzie looked up surprised but also uncertain.

“If it was, why did my dad react the way he did. He kept saying stuff like he was going to send me away somewhere,” Lizzie said, with a frown.

Jade paused as those words registered.

“First offs, that boy was being mean, you were right to be upset...” Jade said, slowly

“I wanted him to hurt though… I wanted him to be in pain and he died because of what I did...was he right, is there something wrong with me?” Lizzie asked, playing with her hands.

“Hey,” Jade said, sternly as she moved so that she was right in front of Lizzie. “Little miss, there is  _ nothing _ wrong with you.”

“But I’m bipolar...” Lizzie pointed out.

“Just because you're different, doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you, got it?” Jade said, her voice was very firm 

“Okay...” Lizzie agreed, hesitantly. The two sat in silence for a bit before Jade asked another question.

“Little miss, when he was talking about sending you away, did he say where he was going to send you?” Jade said, looking at her thoughtfully.

“Someplace called a prison world,” Lizzie answered and Jade nodded, as her eyes flashed with anger.

“Little miss, did he do something that caused you to land here?” Jade asked, holding her gaze.

“No, but I was messing with this weird object thing he brought out and pricked my finger, then I was here,” Lizzie said, shaking her head.

“Okay…” Jade took a deep breath. “Did he see you messing with the object?”

“No, my mom was yelling at him in another room,” Lizzie said, and Jade frowned.

“Right, well, the place we’re in right now is the prison world he was talking about,” Jade explained, with a sigh.

“Oh...oops?” Lizzie said, sheepishly.

“Yeah, maybe don’t mess with a magical object that you don’t recognize, cause sometimes they can be dangerous,” Jade said, giving her an amused look.

“So...what does a prison world mean?” Lizzie asked, with a curious look.

“Basically, you know how all in the normal world there’s a bunch of people?” Jade said, watching Lizzie calmly.

“Yeah,” Lizzie nodded.

“Well, this place has none of the people nor does it have living animals. But it has everything else from a snapshot in time,” Jade explained.

“Huh?”

“Okay, so say today was Halloween when the prison world was created, still with me?” Jade asked.

“Yeah, kinda,” Lizzie replied.

“You know how there are a bunch of decorations, like pumpkins and other Halloween stuff...” Jade said, trying to describe it in a way a kid could understand.

“Mm-hmm” 

“Well, if this place was created on Halloween, there would be Halloween decorations everywhere people celebrated. And there would probably be candy everywhere.” Josie said, smirking in amusement as Lizzie’s face lit up at the word ‘candy’.

“Awesome,” Lizzie breathed.

“Yeah. anyways if you ate the candy, it would reappear in the next day cycle or tomorrow because it’s the same day over and over, understand little miss?” Jade finished, looking at Lizzie.

“I kind of get it. If this is a prison world, when is it stuck at?” Lizzie wondered. And Jade paused as she was hit by a certain realization. 

“...Lizzie, can I ask you a real quick question?” She asked.

“You just did…” Lizzie pointed out, jokingly “But yeah.”

“What’s the year?” Jade asked.

“2021”

Jade paused and nodded.

“Ok, well the year here is 2018.” She said, and Lizzie’s eyes widened in wonder.

“Whoa”

“Yep, insane right?” Jade smirked at Lizzie.

Lizzie nodded then gave Jade a confused look. “How did you get here?” She asked.

“Well, I did something bad, along with two of my friends and your dad sent us here as a punishment” Jade explained, and Lizzie frowned.

“My dad’s a poo-doo head.” She declared.

“He is,” Jade agreed. 

Lizzie looked at Jade with open curiosity.

“What did you do?” She asked.

“Well, little miss, it was something similar to what you did. I lost control after these bullies were really mean to us and my friend and I killed them,” Jade explained.

“If they were mean, they deserved it,” Lizzie said, without hesitating.

“I agree but your dad didn’t see it that way,” Jade replied, with a shrug.

“I’m sorry” Lizzie apologized.

“Thank you, Iz,” Jade said, and Lizzie gave Jade a puzzled look.

“Iz?” She wondered.

“Lizzie...Izzy. It's just a little nickname.” Jade said, looking at her. 

“I like it,” Lizzie stated, with a grin.

“Good, ‘cause you’re keeping it,” Jade said, smirking.

“What’s gonna happen now?” Lizzie asked.

“Well, I’m going to introduce you to my friends and we’ll figure it out from there,” Jade replied.

“Are your friends nice?” Lizzie asked.

“They’re a little rough around the edges but they’re nice. I’ll just need to speak to them first,” Jade explained as she glanced at the clock.

Lizzie yawned, and Jade gave her a speculative look

“Someone’s tired...how about you sleep, while I go talk to my friends. And when I come back, I’ll introduce you,” Jade said, and Lizzie gave Jade a tired look.

“Promise?” Lizzie asked, looking worried.

“Promise,” Jade replied.

And Jade helped Lizzie set up on the couch, before going in search of the others. When she finally found them, she looked between them.

“Lizzie Saltzman is here, in the prison world,” Jade said, simply.

“What? How? Why?” Wendy asked, all at once, completely taken aback as Diego processed her words.

“Who cares about the why? We can finally exact our revenge on Saltzman.” Diego interrupted Jade as she was about to explain.

“Good point” Wendy nodded.

“We won’t be exacting any revenge using Lizzie” Jade disagreed, immediately.

“Why the hell not?” Diego growled, eyes flashing yellow.

“First of all, she’s a child. Second of all, she killed someone who was being cruel to her and her dad was going to send her here but she accidentally messed with the ascendant and sent herself.” Jade explained.

“She killed someone?” Wendy asked, surprised and Diego had an impressed look on his face.

“Yeah, some asshole kid that thought she was an abomination and freak because she’s a siphoner and bipolar,” Jade answered, glancing between the two.

“Can’t exactly blame her for killing him then if that’s what he called her,” Diego admitted, with a shrug.

“How old is she?” Wendy wondered.

“7, it’s 2021 right now,” Jade said, leaning against the wall.

“It’s been a year since we were trapped here...it’s felt longer,” Wendy said, with a distant look on her face.

“What are we going to do about the girl?” Diego asked, looking between the girls.

“I don’t know, but since she wasn’t sent here the way we were, I think she’ll age.” Jade theorized.

“That means she can die” Wendy realized.

“We can’t send her off on her own, she wouldn’t survive,” Jade pointed out.

“Careful Jade, it’s starting to sound like you humanity is coming back on” Diego commented, giving Jade a look.

“Shut up, I simply don’t see the point of harming a little girl. Especially since a better punishment for Saltzman is for his daughter to turn out just like us,” Jade denied, rolling her eyes.

“It sounds like she already is...” Wendy muttered.

“True...” Jade said, conceding to that point. “Want to meet her? She’s sleeping right now, but she wanted me to wake her out so she can meet you guys.”

“Sure,” Wendy said, nodding in agreement. They both turned to Diego, who rolled his eyes.

“Fine,” He agreed.

The three of them headed back to the boarding house.

When they got there, Jade went to where Lizzie was sleeping on the couch and knelt down beside her head.

“Little miss, wakey wakey.” Jade said, softly as she shook her awake. Lizzie opened her eyes blurrily.

“Jade?” She whispered, blinking in confusion.

“I got some people for you to meet,” Jade said, and Lizzie’s sleepiness disappeared, replaced by nervousness.

“Hi” She whispered looking at the other two in the room.

“Hi, little one. My name is Wendy,” Wendy introduced, walking over.

Diego followed behind, awkwardly. “The names Diego” 

“Nice to meet you...” Lizzie whispered then looked over at Jade. “What’s gonna happen to me now?” 

Wendy decided to speak instead of Jade. “We’ll take care of you, little one,” She said with a smile.


	4. Waking the Devil

* * *

2 years had passed since Lizzie had accidentally sent herself into the prison world. And during this time, she had mainly lived with Jade but she hung around the others often.

In her time here, Wendy had taught her a lot of offensive magic along with a little bit of defensive magic.

Lizzie’s favorites were the fire spells and the spells that caused things to either explode or go flying.

The three supernatural beings had also continued her education and other extra curriculums they thought were necessary for her to know.

Lizzie didn’t care for the learning part but if she did well, she was allowed to do the fun stuff with the others.

Like the self-defense lessons that Diego gave her or the magic lessons, given to her by Wendy.

While Jade typically supervised all of that and taught her a bunch of fun games and other fun things. 

One time Jade got an amusement park working so that Lizzie could go on the rides.

It was fun.

Jade also baked with Lizzie and tried teaching her how to cook. It didn’t go that well seeing as the two girls were not particularly good at it and Lizzie liked to set things on fire for no reason...oops. 

Lizzie was in the room she claimed as her own in the apparent boarding house. She was doing the magic assignment that Wendy had given to her about what could happen if you mispronounce something in a spell.

There was a knock on her door and Lizzie glanced up to see Jade entering.

“Jade,” Lizzie said in greeting as she put the work to the side.

“What are you doing, little miss?” Jade asked, coming to sit next to her.

“The homework Wendy gave me,” Lizzie replied and purposely laid herself across Jade’s lap. Jade looked down at her in amusement.

“Wendy will be happy to hear that,” Jade said, with a smirk. “Anyways, guess what we found…”

Lizzie looked up at the emotionless vampire in curiosity. “What?” She asked, meeting Jade’s eyes.

“Guess, see if you can get it right,” Jade said, encouragingly.

“Did you find a way out of here?”

Jade shook her head no and Lizzie frowned thoughtfully, the dreams she had been having over the last month pushed themselves to the forefront of her mind.

“Did you find a man desica..desicat...how do you say that?” Lizzie said, struggling to pronounce the word.

“Desiccated?” Jade asked, looking surprised. “Little Miss, how did you know that?”

Lizzie shrugged. “I’ve been having dreams of a man...and I think he’s family but I wasn’t sure if it was real.” She explained.

“Family?” Jade asked, blinking in surprise.

“Yeah...he feels like family, I don’t know how to explain it...I think his name is Kai.” Lizzie said, revealing a key detail.

“Wait, as in the same Kai your parents mentioned?” Jade asked, frowning in realization.

Lizzie’s eyes darkened at the comment about her parents. Over the 2 years, Lizzie had started to understand what her dad was thinking about doing. He was going to send her into a prison world all because of a mistake.

Sure her killing someone was great but she was 7 then.

Her mom may have been able to stop him but that doesn’t change the fact that he was going to lock her up. Her anger and feeling of betrayal had reached a bubbling point, which caused her to have some violent outbursts.

Her dad wanted to trap her here with a bunch of ‘psychos’ like her. And she hated him for it. He was going to send her away from her sister, and her mom for who knows how long and she would be trapped in a child’s body until she was released.

Which was why she was kind of grateful that she accidentally activated the magic thingy ma bob because at least she could age here. But she missed her sister...she missed Jo. 

Lizzie sometimes cried herself to sleep thinking about her twin but there was nothing she could do.

And a part of her wondered if they were even looking for her...if they cared.

“Lizzie?” Jade said, nudging her to bring her out of her thoughts.

“Hmm?” Lizzie looked up at Jade, who was watching her with something close to concern. But not actually seeing as her flip was switched. “It might be...but I think he tried to kill me and Josie.”

“Josie and I,” Jade corrected automatically. “Hold up, he tried to do what now?”

“It's just a vision of the same desi-cca-ted person in my other visions. And in it, he was hunting for us, with an ax.” Lizzie said, answering Jade’s question.

Jade was quiet for a moment. “So we’re not waking him up, got it.” She declared.

“No,” Lizzie disagreed, shaking her head.

“What?” Jade asked, looking confused. 

“He might know how to escape,” Lizzie said, softly.

“He also might try and kill you again though.” Jade pointed out.

“I have you, Wendy, and Diego to protect me. And if he does try, we can trap him or something.” Lizzie argued, and Jade had to admit that was a good idea.

“Alright, fine. We’ll do it but I want you to stay here under a spell for safety.” Jade ordered firmly.

“Okay,” Lizzie agreed.

Lizzie sat up and Jade got off the bed.

“If something goes wrong, don’t hesitate to attack, got it, little miss?” Jade said, looking down at the young siphoner.

Lizzie nodded and Jade left the room.

Lizzie sat there for a little while before getting up and casting a cloaking spell. 

She knew she should listen to Jade but where was the fun in that.

<><><><><><><>

Josie was sitting in the library in the spot she always was looking through another grimoire. 

What was she doing?

She was searching for her sister.

She would never stop until she found her. Eventually, she would, she just had to keep looking. It had been 3 years but she was holding out hope.

Speaking of Hope…

A certain tribrid was making her way through the library towards her.

Josie felt her apprehension rise.

She had rarely ever spoken to the older girl. Especially since Lizzie disappeared. Before that, they had kept trying to be her friend, mainly because the twins could understand what it was like to not fit in but Hope would reject them every time.

So after Lizzie was gone, she stopped trying, and in a turn of events, Hope actually started reaching out to Josie but this time Josie turned her away.

Maybe in a different life, she would have talked to her because she craved more friends than her sister but now...friends meant nothing.

Her twin was everything.

And no matter what everyone said, she would always believe that her sister was alive. She could feel it. Her dad may not believe her but she didn’t need his support, she had her moms. And whenever her mom went on recruitment missions she would bring back grimoires and other books that might help Josie look for or even find her sister.

Hope took a seat at the table and looked at the book in Josie’s hands and at the piles of papers full of Josie’s writing.

“What are you reading?” Hope asked, trying to start the conversation.

Yeah...no.

“A book,” Was her only reply but Hope was not pushed away by her attitude. Probably because she had used it on the twins so many times when they were younger.

“What type of book?” Hope asked.

“A book with words,” Josie said, flipping the page.

“What are the words about?” Hope probed.

“Magic,”

Hope paused and grinned. “What type of magic?”

“Cloaking and barrier spells,” Josie replied, shortly.

“Why are you looking into that?” Hope asked, confused.

“So I can find my sister, who is not dead by the way. Now can you leave me alone, I can’t focus with you speaking.” Josie said, rudely.

Hope was silent.

“I’m sorry…” Hope whispered.

Josie looked up in confusion “What? You already said sorry to me about my sister”

“No, not about that. I’m sorry that no one believes that you can tell that she isn’t dead.” Hope said, watching her reaction carefully.

Josie swallowed.

“You believe me?”

Hope nodded. “My aunt told me about twins. It’s not normal for this to happen with witch twins but sometimes they have an incredible bond. And you and Lizzie had that. If anyone would know that she was dead, it would be you. So if you say she’s alive, then she’s alive.” She said.

Josie blinked back tears. “Thank you…”

“I want to help you…” Hope said, and Josie looked at her in confusion. So Hope clarified. “Find her, I mean.” 

“Why?” Josie asked.

“Because...I never gave you two a chance. I should’ve...I don’t know why I didn’t. So I want to help you.” Hope said, playing with her fingers.

“What? So you pity me? That’s why you want to help?” Josie rolled her eyes and started packing everything up.

“What? No!” Hope exclaimed, causing Josie to pause. “I’ve known you guys since you were four and when Lizzie disappeared 2 years ago...I felt like something went missing. And after I thought about it, I realized that it was like one-third of a whole had disappeared. That’s why…”

Josie stared at her for a moment.

“Ok”

<><><><><><><>

Jade along with Wendy and Diego entered the place with the man. 

“Are we sure this is a good idea? As much as I want to escape, doing this could be extremely dangerous for Lizzie,” Wendy said, staring at the man warily. His skin was completely gray and there were veins throughout his skin.

“Lizzie said it was fine, and we can handle him if he gets dangerous,” Diego said, rolling his eyes. The girls were so dramatic.

He walked over to the right to turn off the music that echoes around them.

Jade glanced at the others, carrying the blood bags.

She approached the guy and poured the blood into his mouth. There was no response for a short bit, but then his fangs came out and sank into the bag.

The second the blood bag was empty, they all moved away and stared at the man.

Jade watched the veins retreat as his skin returned to normal.

There was movement under his eyelid, then his eyes shot open.

He looked directly at Jade, then at the other two.

Jade felt the hairs on her neck stand up.

There was something strange and eerie about this guy.

“Well, I definitely did not see this coming,” He said with a smirk.

“Is your name Kai?” Jade asked, watching the man carefully, taking note of the way he observed them all.

He focused his eyes on Jade.

“Now how do you know that?” He said, indirectly answering the question.

“How did you get here?” Jade said, not ready to answer his question.

The man who was most definitely Kai tilted his head. “How did I get here? This place was made for me,” Kai said, his eyes flashing darkly.

Jade swallowed.

“Was it because you tried to kill the Saltzman twins?” Wendy spoke up for the first time.

He paused, and his eyes locked onto Wendy causing her to tense.

“Who me? I would never harm a child. It was a complete misunderstanding. I was simply trying to mind my own business and they happened to be there and all I tried to do was...say hello to my dear nieces.” Kai said laughing as he lied through his teeth.

Nieces…

He was their uncle.

She kept her face blank as if that piece of information didn’t matter.

Jade raised an eyebrow. “And you need an ax for that?” She inquired, meeting his gaze head-on.

Kai went completely still. “I find it kind of strange that a group of random teenagers would know that and who I am...which begs the question, how the hell are you here, and how do you know anything about me?” He asked, holding Jade’s gaze.

Diego stepped forward. “We were sent here 3 years ago by the asshole Alaric Saltzman after we killed a few people and the reason we know is because of Liz-” Diego was cut off by Wendy coughing.

Jade snapped her head over to glare at Diego warningly.

Kai observed their reaction, and his thoughts were focused on what he was about to say.

“Liz...as is Lizzie?” Kai asked, something unreadable in his expression.

Jade tensed, fighting the urge to facepalm, while Wendy turned on Diego angrily and flicked her wrist, snapping his neck.

Kai looked like he was holding back a laugh.

“I’ll take that as a yes...what’s the year?” Kai asked, his intense gaze focused on Jade.

Jade hesitated before answering. He had to know about Lizzie at some point, maybe it was better to tell him now rather than later.

“2023,” Jade said, shifting slightly.

Kai closed his eyes doing the math.

“5 years...4 years old...9. Lizzie is nine years old...first of all, I find it surprising that she would remember me trying to kill her, my little brother and sister certainly didn’t and they were the same age. Also, how would she know about the ax, and why would you three know all this?” Kai said, ranting his thought process out aloud.

“Because she had a vision of you...and we know because she’s here with us and has been for 2 years,” Jade said finally.

He stared and stared.

“2 years? You said you were sent here 3 years ago,” Kai said, catching that particular detail.

“She wasn’t with us...she came later after she accidentally activated the thing that sent us here because her dad brought it out from its hiding place after she accidentally but also intentionally killed someone but her mom wasn’t going to allow Mr. Saltzman to send Lizzie here but Lizzie activated it on her own,” Wendy explained, calmly.

“She _killed_ someone when she was _7_? And how does someone do it accidentally yet not?” Kai said, staring at them in disbelief.

“She wanted the person, a witch that was bullying her and calling her an abomination, to hurt but went too far,” Jade spoke up, watching Kai’s face intently.

She immediately noticed how he tensed at the word abomination.

“I forgot my nieces were siphoners like me…” Kai said, quietly almost to himself.

“You’re a siphoner?” Wendy said, interrupting his train of thought.

“Yes...so you’re saying that she killed someone who was a dick to her and Ricky-boy was going to send her here but was convinced otherwise by momma-bear but she got too curious and messed with the ascendant and sent herself here?” Kai summarized.

“Yes...wait, what’s an ascendant?” Jade asked, confused.

“The key to the prison world, there’s one here and in the real world,” Kai stated, shifting in his chains.

“Oh…” Jade whispered.

“Now, things one and two, how about you get me out of these chains?” Kai said, raising an eyebrow at them.

“We have names you know,” Wendy said, glaring at the man. “Mine is Wendy, her’s is Jade, and he is Diego.”

“And I don’t care, I have a niece to meet,” Kai said, looking at them expectantly.

“You think we’re going to let you near her? You tried to kill her when she was little.” Jade said, in disbelief.

“Oh, please, I’m over that. Especially since I just learned that she’s a mini-me, why would I kill her?” He asked, looking at them like they were idiots.

“And why would we trust you? If we let you out, we're keeping her blocks away from you.” Jade said, glaring at the 22-year-old, and she flashed her fangs with her veins under her eyes.

Kai looked like he was about to snap back at her when he paused, and stared at something or rather someone behind them.

“I think it’s a little too late for that…” Kai said, with a strange look in his eyes.

Jade turned around abruptly just in time to see a flash of blonde hair dive behind a booth.

“Oh no,” Wendy muttered.

Jade narrowed her eyes in anger.

“Lizzie get your little but out here now…” Jade hissed.

Lizzie hesitantly revealed herself.

Her eyes flickered between her uncle and the angry Jade.

“Hiya, Jade. How’s it going?” Lizzie asked innocently.


	5. Mates?

* * *

“Lizzie, did I not tell you to stay at the boarding house or did that go straight over your head?” Jade asked, crossing her arms over her chest as she stared at her.

Lizzie shifted awkwardly as her gaze flickered between Jade, Wendy, and the chained up man who was staring at her.

“I was going to listen…” Lizzie started but Jade interrupted.

“And why didn’t you?” 

“Because I didn’t want to,” Lizzie said, bluntly. 

Jade stared for a moment before sighing in disbelief as Wendy facepalmed.

The chained up dude started laughing, making them all turn to him.

“I’m sorry but that’s just hilarious,” He said, as he met Lizzie’s curious gaze.

“Who are you?” Lizzie asked, walking forward but Jade stopped her from going much further.

The man smirked at her. “I’m your Uncle Kai,” He replied, as he studied her.

Lizzie blinked, as the words registered.

So that was why he felt like family.

“I didn’t know I had an uncle,” Lizzie said, staring at him, as she considered the new information.

“That’s not surprising, seeing as more than likely your parents hid it from you because they’re cowards,” Kai commented.

“My mom isn’t a coward,” was Lizzie’s reply as she glared at him defensively.

Kai pauses, raising an eyebrow. “And your dad?”

“He’s an asshole,” Lizzie said, with zero hesitation.

“Language, little miss,” Jade muttered, giving her a look, which Lizzie replied with an innocent smile.

Kai grinned. “I knew I was going to like you,” Kai said, cheerfully.

Lizzie looked at him confused.

“Didn’t you try and kill me?” Lizzie asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

Kai went still and met her eyes.

“Maybe, at some point in time, I may have had an ax to grind but after some time to think, I realized I could have handled my anger better,” Kai said, but Lizzie noticed the darkness that seemed to linger in his eyes, which was eerily familiar.

“If you think we’re going to let you out because you say that you no longer want to hurt Lizzie, you are mistaken,” Jade said, moving slightly in front of Lizzie.

“Oh, come on,” Kai said, rolling his eyes. “Why would I harm mini-me?”

“Because you’re an unstable piece of shit,” Jade said, staring at him, mistrustfully.

Kai’s entire demeanor seemed to darken.

_ Pop _

“What was that?” Jade asked, narrowing her eyes, as she looked towards the exit.

_ Pop _

Both Wendy and Jade tensed.

“Jade,” Wendy said, hesitancy clear in her face as she started walking towards the exit. 

Jade narrowed her eyes and glanced at Lizzie. 

“We’ll be right back, don’t move,” She ordered before following Wendy out of the room.

Lizzie looked after them, then at Kai, who was observing her carefully.

“When do you think they're gonna realize that those are timed fireworks meant to distract them?” Lizzie wondered, looking amused.

Kai's mouth opened slightly in shock, then he gave her an impressed look.

“You’re a little evil genius, aren’t you, Lizziebear?” Kai realized, looking slightly proud. “You got that from me.”

Lizzie just grinned, looking way too pleased with herself.

_ Pop pop pop _

Lizzie looked over towards the loud bangs.

“Can’t they see the fireworks?” He asked, giving her a confused look.

“Nope,” Lizzie said, looking excited. “I set them up in one of the stores...so bonfire time!”

“Huh, smart,” Kai complimented, raising an eyebrow.

“Obviously,” Lizzie said, rolling her eyes. She looked around the room and paused as she noticed the very dead Diego.

“What?” Lizzie exclaimed in disbelief. Kai looked from her to the dead body with a look that said ‘oh shit’ but Lizzie ignored him. “I missed Wendy killing him? That’s not fair.”

Kai choked in surprise. “Y-you wanted to see her kill him?”

“Duh, she always kills him in awesome ways.

Like one time, she killed him by cutting off his toes and fingers, while cooking him over a barbecue.” Lizzie said, conversationally as she listened to more fireworks go off.

“That’s creative,” Kai said, staring at her in confusion. There was no way his niece wasn’t a sociopath or something of that kind because Kai may not know a lot about kids but he knew they didn’t find people killing other people intriguing.

“It was funny, although when Jade realized I was there she sent me away.” Lizzie finished with a pout.

Lizzie then remembered what Jade said before she left with Wendy.

“Does she really expect me to stay here until she comes back?” Lizzie wondered, looking at him.

“I think she assumes you have a little thing called common sense,” Kai said, dryly.

“Oh…” Lizzie contemplated the idea before shaking her head. “Well, I don’t.”

And then, with no hesitation, she walked over to the stage he was on and hopped up.

Kai was smirking in amusement.

“What are you doing, Lizziepoo?” Kai asked, following her every move as she approached.

“I’m bored,” Was all she said as she looked over the chains. 

“And what does that mean?” Kai asked, staring at her intently.

“It means, I want to cause chaos,” Lizzie said, with a mischievous smile.

Kai raised an eyebrow. “And how are you going to do that?” He asked, curiously.

Lizzie cocked her head to the side and rested her hand on Kai’s arm.

Kai paused, looking confused.

Lizzie ignored him, closing her eyes as she began siphoning.

She could feel Kai tense in surprise, as he hadn’t expected her to do that.

Barely a few seconds, she stopped siphoning and moved away.

She met Kai’s eyes that were observing her carefully.

“Why did you do that?” Kai asked, slowly.

Lizzie just smirked at him.

“ _ Fractos _ ” 

The chains shattered and fell to the floor.

Kai was frozen for a moment as he processed that he was free, but then, he grinned and stood up, stretching.

He looked down at Lizzie, who was watching him curiously.

He knelt down to her level.

“Thanks for the prison break, Lizzie,” Kai said, with a pleased look on his face. “Now, want to help me cause some chaos?”

Lizzie grinned and nodded enthusiastically.

Kai smirked and stood up, offering his hand.

Lizzie didn’t hesitate to take it. 

* * *

“Josie, are you sure this is a good idea?” Hope asked, staring at her in uncertainty.

“You said you would help,” Josie said, narrowing her eyes at Hope.

“I will,” Hope said, giving the younger girl a look. “I just didn’t expect it to mean we would hitchhike to a small nowhere town in North Carolina in search of a coven of secretive witches that specialize in visions, all while not telling any adults where we’re going.”

“If we told them, they wouldn’t let us go,” Josie said, as they kept walking down the gravel path. “And this is one of my best leads to find my sister.”

“We kids,” Hope pointed out, looking around nervously. “This is dangerous.”

“We’re witches...well your part witch but you what I mean.” Josie countered, easily.

Hope grabbed Josie’s arm. “You're a siphoner and I’m the tribrid. Our species are hated by witches.” Hope argued.

“We’ll be fine,” Josie said, confidently.

“We’ve already been gone for 2 days, my mom and your parents are going to send out search parties for us. And when they find us, we’ll be grounded for life,” Hope said, sighing.

“If I get in trouble for trying to get my sister back then so be it.” Josie declared.

“Ok…” Hope agreed.

“Can we talk about something else?” Josie asked, giving Hope a pleading look. To which, hope responded with a nod.

“What do you think of the new students we’ve had?” Hope asked, giving her a curious look.

“Which ones?” Josie said, shooting a curious look at Hope.

“The foster care brothers,” Hope answered, looking up as the house they’ve been looking for appeared in the distance.

“Oh, you mean the werewolf, Rafael, and the weirdly not-human, Landon?” Josie asked, starting to twitch nervously as they approached the house. “Aren’t they around your age?”

“Yeah, I think they’re either 11 or 10,” Hope replied, tensing as the feeling of being watched overcame her. “They’re in some of my classes but I haven’t talked to either of them, although the curly-haired boy kept trying.” 

“So you’re pulling a typical Hope Mikael-oh sorry-Marshall move?” Josie said, sarcastically.

Hope rolled her eyes at Josie. “I’ve said I’m sorry about that but you know better than anyone in the school, why I act that way.” She said, defensively.

“I know, I’m just pointing out that that’s a thing you pull a lot,” Josue replied.

The two girls came to a stop in front of the front door or the large house.

“How do you think they’re gonna react to a 9-year-old and 11-year-old asking for help?” Hope wondered, aloud.

“Let’s find out,” Josie declared and just as she was about to knock the door swung open and an older black woman looked down at them.

“Hello, girls. I’ve been expecting you,” She said with a smile.

Both Josie and Hope exchanged looks.

“Really?” Josie asked, hopefully.

“Yes, I had visions warning me of the arrival of two very powerful young girls on a great mission.” She said as she gestured for them to come in. The girls slowly walk past the threshold of the door. “My name is Mariah.”

“I’m Josie,” Josie replied, nervousness disappearing as the warm and calming energy of the house enveloped her.

Hope could feel herself relaxing slightly too but she didn’t let herself completely as she remembered all the things her mom and aunt Freya taught her. 

“Hope.”

“Come, sit and we’ll talk,” Mariah said, bringing them to her living room.

Once they were all seated, Mariah looked them over. “May I ask how you came to know about my coven?”

Josie sat up immediately.

“I found a book that mentioned how the Omniscius Coven was a coven of witches that specialized in prophecy and visions. And I thought perhaps you guys might help me…” Josie said, looking up at the older woman.

“Hm, tell me, do you know what my coven's name means?” Mariah asked, looking between them.

“No,” Hope said, looking curious.

“It means all-knowing, not because we know everything as no one can know everything but because we see what others do not. We see what is clear and obvious but others are too ignorant to realize.” Mariah said, looking off in the distance. “We see the possible paths that may come but that does not mean it will come to pass. It’s a very hard thing to understand.”

“Does that mean you won’t be able to help us?” Josie asked, looking sad.

Mariah gave Josie a sad smile. “Not in the way you want, baby girl.” She replied, quietly

“I understand,” Josie said, softy.

“Wait, you said not in the way we want, does that mean you can help in a different way?” Hope asked, looking at her in realization.

Josie looked up hopefully.

“Smart girl,” Mariah complimented. “I can help in a way.”

“How?” Josie inquired.

“Your sister is alive and well but I must warn you, she is not the same as you once knew her,” Mariah said, as she leaned forward. Josie’s facial expressions ranged from happy to confused and worried about what those words meant. “But before I tell you more there is something you need to know. Something about all three of you”

“What?” Hope asked, wondering why she was being brought into this.

“Hope, have you felt like there’s been something missing since her sister disappeared?” Mariah asked with a knowing look.

“How did you know?” Hope asked, surprised.

“Hmm, it appears that you have what is called true mates. And it appears that Josie and her twins are them.” Mariah said, watching Hope's reaction carefully.

“You mean like soulmates? Like in those romance stories?” Hope asked, feeling shocked, but somehow the words were just right.

“What?” Josie exclaimed after she got through her sudden paralysis. “I’m her what now? And so is Lizzie? Wait, does that mean Lizzie is my mate?”

The look on Josie's face was one of pure disgust. And Hope’s soon followed as she registered the words.

Mariah laughed. “No, you and your sister are not mates, you just share the same mate.” She replied, looking amused as Josie collapsed with relief but then the look of disgust reappeared as she realized she was supposed to ‘date’ Hope.

Gross, she was like 2 years older than her.

That’s just nasty.

“This sounds like a bad romantic comedy…” Hope said, dryly. “Besides, I was never planning on dating.”

Mariah looked at the young tribrid in amusement.

“Being mates does not mean you will be together in that way. It just means you will have an incredible bond and know each other in a way that no one else does.” Mariah said, reassuringly but then a smirk appeared on her face. “Although, you may feel differently when you’re older….”

Both girls had looks of total disagreement so Mariah decided to continue.

“The reason I needed to tell you that is because wherever your sister is, is blocking off your twin bond with her,” Mariah said, looking at Josie. “‘But mate bonds work differently but similarly and because the power Hope has within her, there’s a chance you may be able to reach out to her but it may take years to learn how to access it since you two aren’t near each other, which prevents that bond from strengthening. So you have to strengthen it on your side alone.”

Josie and Hope stared at each other in determination.

“Teach me how,” was Hope’s only reply.


End file.
